无妄 → 觀
Hexagram 25: Innocence → Hexagram 20: Contemplation
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 2 changing lines (lines 1, 4).
Line 1
初九 无妄。往吉。
Nine at the beginning means: Innocent behavior brings good fortune.
Line 4
九四 可貞。无咎。
Nine in the fourth place means: He who can be persevering Remains without blame.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
三羖五牂，相隨俱行。迷入空澤，循谷直北。經涉六駮，為所傷賊。
Three rams and five ewes; together they travel. Lost in an empty marsh; following the valley northward. Passing through the realm of the dappled beast; they are wounded and preyed upon.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Three rams and five ewes travel together, wandering into an empty marsh. Following the valley northward, they encounter the liubo — a fierce multicolored beast from the Shanhaijing said to devour tigers and leopards. The flock is mauled and savaged. From Innocence to Contemplation, the transformation reveals observation's double edge. Guan's image of wind moving over the earth suggests the sage-king's survey of all things, but here the flock wanders without guidance into predator territory. Contemplation demands seeing clearly before acting; these sheep have no shepherd, no vantage point. The liubo lurking in the valley embodies the dangers invisible to those who move without surveying the landscape first.
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